Communion Prayer March 2, 2014

Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. ² And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. ³ Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. ⁴ Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I^[a] will make three dwellings^[b] here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” ⁵ While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved;^[c] with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” ⁶ When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. ⁷ But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up and do not be afraid.” ⁸ And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.⁹ As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead. (Matthew 17:1-9

Transfiguration by Alexandr Ivanov, 1824

Dear Lord, 

We come on this Transfiguration Sunday

To share the bread and wine

In celebration and remembrance of you.

The Creator called you :" Beloved."

We call you "Savior."

Let this bread and wine remind us

Of your glory,

Of your love,

Of your sacrifice,

Of your words to Peter, James and John:

"Do not be afraid,"

Amen.

Offeratory Prayer March 2, 2014

Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. ² And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. ³ Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. ⁴ Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I^[a] will make three dwellings^[b] here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” ⁵ While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved;^[c] with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” ⁶ When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. ⁷ But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up and do not be afraid.” ⁸ And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.⁹ As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead. (Matthew 17:1-9 )

Transfiguration by Alexandr Ivanov, 1824

Dear Lord,  I know

That when you came down

From the Mount of Transfiguration

You entered into a world of suffering

And immediately healed a young man,

We cannot heal as you did,

But we can give our treasure and our time

To your service.

Bless what we lay before you,

And use it for the benefit of your kingdom.

In Jesus name I pray.

Amen.

Lectionary Gospel Reading for January 12, 2014

Matthew 3:13-17
3:13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him.
3:14 John would have prevented him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?"
3:15 But Jesus answered him, "Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness." Then he consented.
3:16 And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him.
3:17 And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased."

 Creator, Word, and Love

God complete in three.

 John recognizes that he confronts the Word,

God Incarnate.

John believes he is not worthy to baptize God.

Jesus reassures him with cryptic words.

Jesus chooses to use baptism

To signal his commitment to the Kingdom.

We echo his actions

When we are baptized.

And commit ourselves to the Triune God. 

 Jesus rises from the water

Just as he will rise from the grave.

The Love of God descends on Jesus

Linking Creator and Word with Love.

The Trinity is renewed.

Jesus, the Son of Man,

Has received the blessing of the Creator

Through the Holy Spirit.

That blessing and love will carry him

To Jerusalem,

To Death,

To Resurrection.

The Judgment of the Nations

The Judgment of the Nations

31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, 33 and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. 34 Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? 38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? 39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ 40 And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family,g you did it to me.’ 41 Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; 42 for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44 Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?’ 45 Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ 46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Today the Lectionary puts our focus on how Christians are to act.

How seldom we heed these words.

Time for those who profess to follow the Son of Man

To do what he commands.

To those who say it only matters how we act as individuals

I say heed the words of God.

Judgment is for the nations

As well as the individual.

Christ's command

Was to love God

And love our neighbor.

Our neighbor is not only the person next door.

Our neighbor is the one who has been set upon by evil:

Evil in the form of robbers,

Evil in the form of hunger,

Evil in the form of thirst,

Evil in the form of deportation,

Evil in the form of lack of shoes and clothes,

Evil in the form of sickness,

Evil in the form of imprisonment.

We ignore the unfortunate at the cost

Of God's eternal opprobrium.

We must embrace compassion

As an individual,

As a nation,

And care for the least in the family of God.

Change

Change comes like a sudden storm

To blow our routine away

And drench our careful plans.

Today we say good-by

To a shepherd of this flock,

A shepherd who has welcomed newborns
And strangers,

Prayed with us,
Wept with us,

Offered us the bread and the wine,
And ushered some through the final door.

  My thanks

For putting me once more
On the church bound path,

For showing me kindness and understanding,

For demonstrating grace with tenderness

And the strength to start anew.

I place this change in God's hands.
This church is like a butterfly
Trapped in its chrysalis

Waiting to be reborn.
No one can free the church from without,
Freedom comes from within.
A church must spread its wings
To feel the Son's blessing.
The future of this church
Does not lie in the hands of some miracle worker

But in the toil of those who choose
To forget the past
And build anew.

The Echo of God

Photo by AMagill

Lord, I need to know Your will.

I pray,
But hear nothing,
Not even a rustle as you pass by.

Perhaps I am so busy babbling

That I am not aware of your presence.

I will wait for your answer
To my prayers,
To my entreaties.
I will seek to be still and listen
For you.

Will you reply in a great wind,
Or through the trembling of the earth,
Or in words of fire,

Or in whispers of smoke?
No.
You have already answered 

Through the actions of those around me,

Through a chance encounter with a stranger.

O God,

O Creator, Comforter, and Word,
Make me an answer to another's prayer.

Make me an echo of your unrelenting love.

God Incarnate Chose Brown

Kittens tumble across the floor:
Black, white, gray, or orange
Born to a calico mother.
Cats see no difference because of color.
Why are we not more like these furry creatures
And see only our common humanity?
Why  focus on the skin tint

Developed for survival in different climes?

 
What color was Jesus,

God Incarnate?
Not the pale hue of northern climes,

No matter what our paintings show.
Born in a land scorched by the sun
The Christ was neither white nor black,

But brown as the pottery from which he ate.
We cannot choose the color of our skin,
But God could.
Why do we forget?

Trust

Mother God, Father God,

Your names are endless
And encompass all.

Your kingdom comes on the wings of angels

And in the footsteps of humanity

Who follow the Shepherd.

Give us nourishment for our bodies

And love for our souls.

Forgive us when we do not trust you

As we forgive those who betray our trust.

Do not take your presence from us.

Let us always know the Comforter is near.

Keep us safe from unbelief and pride.

You are beginning and end,
Creation and annihilation,

Love unending.
Amen.

Photo by Delphine
Original by Kitina Celt

We Are the Book

I contemplate the Bible,
The record of God's deeds
In times far past;
The written record of the life of Jesus
And the commitment of the apostles.
Is there a record for today?
Does some lonely author
Now write words that will inspire
Those in the far future?
Perhaps in our time the record is written
On the heart of every believer.
Each carries the Word within.
So, our duty is to be the book
The world can read
And know God.

Photo by Paul Keller

Memorial Day 2013

"I come to the garden alone,
While the dew is still on the roses;
And the voice I hear, falling on my ear,
The Son of God discloses."

 Memorial Day comes again.

Reminding me that

Another friend died this year.
Another funeral.
Grief for his family,
He will be missed.
Grief stirred memories rise
As "In the Garden" wakes

Forgotten sorrow.

A time of loss.
Old friends and family gone
As the World War II generation fades.

Those born in the rural past
Die in the urban present.

Too many precious friends

 Left long ago

In my generation's war,

In Viet Nam.

Their graves stand as sentinels

To this nation's hubris.

Now a new generation,

Young, full of hope,

Face their wars:

Afghanistan.

Iraq.

So many have died,

So many continue to die.

Bow your head

 To the sorrow

Of so much death

And listen to Christ's words,

"Blessed are they that mourn;
For they shall be comforted."

Photo by *clarity*

Trinity Sunday 2013

 The Trinity proclaims

"I am love in action."

The Creator,

I AM.

 The Christ,

The Word,

God in action.

The Holy Spirit,

The Comforter,

Love.

Together.
I AM Love in action.

Three in one,

Trinity.

Gladness is a Firefly

"This is the day the Lord hath made;

We will rejoice and be glad in it."
Psalm 118:24

My mother's favorite verse.
She had it posted on her bathroom mirror.

God is the Creator;

He speaks and existence begins.

Every day he renews that speech.

Apart from God

There is nothing.

Our time on earth is brief;

Let us savor each instant.

Joy comes from everywhere;

We need only pay attention.

Gladness, like a firefly,

Wings in and flashes for the moment.

If we try to trap gladness,

It will die.

Gladness must be free

To find another.

Rejoice,

For that is God's command.

Pentecost 2013

On this day,
The Comforter,

The Holy Spirit,

Makes her presence known.
The day is Pentecost.
Fifty days from Easter.
Ten days from Jesus' ascent into Heaven.
God as Comforter comes
As Christ promised.
Jews were celebrating
 The Feast of the First Fruits.
Was this the first harvest for Christ?

Photo by Lawrence CP

Too many turn from Pentecost
In dread

Of emotion,

Of losing control,

Of the Holy Spirit.
What we fear
Does not exist.

Only God,

Three in One,

Exists.
The Holy Spirit
Completes the Trinity.
The Holy Spirit
Is the Love
That binds Creator and Word.
The Holy Spirit
Is God's love
Washing over all people.
Share that love.

Paying Attention

Jesus stopped to drink at a well in Samaria.
There he met a woman
Who had come to do a daily chore:
Draw water.
Christ offered this woman of a scorned race
Living water,
Water that would give eternal life.
She was not a perfect being.
She had sinned and Jesus knew it.
But to her, Jesus said,
"I AM."
We seek God's presence
In edifices of faith.
Perhaps we need to seek God
Where we live.
Perhaps "I AM" seeks us
Where we pursue our daily tasks.
Perhaps we need only
Pay attention to those around us
To meet the great "I AM."

Photo by IJsendoorn

Violent Nation

   

We are a nation bereft.

Our children die in the home, 

In the classroom,

And in the streets,

Murdered because we embrace

Guns in the name of freedom.

Change us,

Change our nation.

Make it safe for all.

We were never meant to be

"One nation under God."

We were meant to be

"From many one."

We must all be safe

Or we are all in danger.

Fear leads to prejudice,

Prejudice leads to intolerance,

Intolerance leads to hate,
And hate leads to violence.  
Erase our fear with your grace,

So that hate never corrupts our soul

And violence has no home.

Keep us wrapped in your love

And safe in the knowledge

That this life is but a stop

On the way to eternity.   

Easter 2013

He is risen!
He is risen indeed!
These words echo
Through the centuries.
The words of resurrection.
The words of Easter.
The heartbeat of Christianity.

Photo by hoyameg

The disciples, lost and grieving,
Change in one day
Because he is risen.
Soon they will spread the news
Throughout the world
For they know the truth:

Death has been conquered,

Christ is alive.

We celebrate his resurrection

And his promise

That all who love God

And love others

Shall have eternal life.
He is risen.

He is risen today.

The Saturday before Easter

On this day,
The apostles are absent

From the gospels,
This missing day.
Jesus is dead
His disciples believe.
Their world is ashes.
Their grief is immense.
They fear for their lives.
They hide in the upper room.
Only the women dare to go out.
Jerusalem is strangely quiescent.

Pilate places a guard by the tomb.

This day Christ's body lies undisturbed.
Tomorrow the disciples' world

Will come alive
But not today.
We must remember

That missing day
When sorrow fills us,
When we tremble in fear,
When we hide from the world.
Those that knew our Savior best
Did not escape their human frailty,
Neither can we.
We know that with the morrow
Came relief and jubilation.
We have the risen Christ
Not the missing day.

Good Friday 2013

Why is it called Good Friday?

I have heard many answers.

None satisfy.

Jesus, the Word made flesh, God incarnate,

Died on Friday.  
The day after he shared the Passover meal  
With those that believed in him.

Fully human.

So human that he suffered agony

Nailed to a cross 
After a brutal flogging.

We recoil in horror

At his death

And think it took so long.

Six hours.

Most crucified took days to die 
Unless they were flogged.

Fully God

Who had never known death.

All God's creation past had drunk

Of that bitter cup,

But God had not.

God died on that first Good Friday,

As much of God

As could exist in human form.

A maimed, lifeless body was laid in

The cold stone tomb.

Creation waited.

Maundy Thursday 2013

Maundy Thursday.
Maundy for the British Monarch's
Alms for the poor. 

The Thursday before Easter.

The day before the crucifixion.

The day that Jesus washed his disciples feet

Even though he knew

His death was at hand.

The day Jesus and his disciples
Ate their Passover meal
In an upper room.
There Jesus instituted Communion,

The Lord's Supper,
Christians practice today.

There Judas shared bread with Jesus

Before he left to betray him.

Today many will gather for Communion.

Where believers partake of this sacrament
The Holy Spirit joins them.
Bread and wine,
Flesh and blood.

Remember the man. 

Remember the Word made flesh.
Remember God kneeling before each disciple.

Remember Jesus' patience.

Remember his sacrifice.

Spy Wednesday 2013

Judas and Peter

Spy Wednesday,

Holy Wednesday,

The Wednesday before the Crucifixion,

The day that Judas Iscariot

Conspires with the High Priest

And receives thirty pieces of silver
For the deed to come.
On the morrow,
With a kiss,

Judas hands Christ over 
To his enemies
In the time that follows

Peter denies Jesus thrice.
After Jesus' death
But before the resurrection,
Judas dies by his own hand. 
Peter sits in the upper room
Devastated that he betrayed his Teacher.
Judas dies unforgiven.
Peter knows forgiveness

From the risen Christ.
What is the difference between the fates

Of these two men?

Judas dies despised by all his breathren.
Peter dies the rock
On which Christ's church is erected.  
 Judas acts to take his life
While Peter waits.
Is that the answer?
When all is clothed in darkness,
Must we wait
 For God
Not act on impulse?

In this Easter season,
Give us the knowledge to know
When not to take action.
Give us the strength to wait for God.